5 Ways to Get Home in the Rain
It Rains on Tuesdays
It was a Tuesday afternoon.
I’m often driving home on Tuesdays after spending a few days with my new grandbaby.
It rains on Tuesdays.
I fill the 3-hour drive with a couple hours of podcasts and a good hour of my favorite worship music (hello, Matt Maher and Cory Asbury).
It was raining particularly hard on this Tuesday. So hard I began to fret. I turned off the music. I concentrated on seeing.
But seeing wouldn’t come easy.
On I-65 the road is crowded with big trucks. I was behind an 18-wheeler in the pelting rain. I eased back a little from him, but not enough to lose his lights.
I needed him.
Isn’t that the way life is? When circumstances or relationships or illnesses begin pelting us, we temporarily lose vision. We can’t see the way. We’re not sure where the boundaries lines are on the road we’re traveling.
We need a light to follow.
5 Ways to Get Home in the Rain
- LOOK FOR A LIGHT
When you can’t see far into the future, look for a light close by. One light may be enough. Just for the next step in front of you. Maybe it’s a faithful friend. Or an encouraging scripture. Or a promise from God that keeps you on the path.
Find the light and focus.
- STAY IN YOUR LANE
Driving on the interstate that Tuesday, my main goal was to stay in my lane. I didn’t want to veer into traffic in other lanes or off the shoulder into the trees. I needed to follow the path that was already there.
Don’t let confusion paralyze you. When you don’t know what decision to make next, keep going the direction you’re headed unless God turns you around. Trust him to let you know if he wants you to turn right or left.
Until then, stay in your lane.
- SLOW IT DOWN
I couldn’t drive 70 mph in the rain that day. It was too dangerous.
Likewise, when your pathway gets foggy, slow down your walk. Don’t rush through the steps, pushing through life to get through to the other side. Take a breath and decrease your speed so you can pay closer attention to the details in front of you.
- KEEP THE RIGHT DISTANCE
When I got too close to the truck in front of me, I drowned in his splatter. But if I drifted too far behind, I lost his light. There was a balanced distance that was just right.
When you’re seeking help from others, keep a balanced distance there, too.
Don’t become so dependent on another person for wisdom that you’re consumed in their shadow. But don’t become a loner either and try to do life alone. Let Jesus guide you in healthy relationships to see you through.
- TURN ON YOUR LIGHTS
I immediately turned on my own car lights when the rain started. Not only did I need to see better myself, but I also needed to be seen. I didn’t need to disappear in the rain and have others bump into me.
When your own problems seem overwhelming, it’s easy to tend toward isolation. But don’t disappear under the weight of your circumstances. Let others know you’re here. Let them see you. Get vulnerable and be helped.
The Rain Will Stop
I experienced something new that afternoon in the rain.
The harder the rain fell, I noticed a change in the truck’s lights in front of me. No longer a solid stream, they became flashers. And the car’s light beside him, too. And the one in front of him.
How have I been driving this many years and never before noticed flashers in the rain?
But it made a difference. It was easier to see in front of me with their flashing lights. I found my flashers and turned them on too for others behind me.
I knew we were all in this together. Strangers on the road were becoming friends on the journey. God never leaves us alone.
We all wanted to get home, wherever home was.
And eventually, as it always does, the rain stopped. The sun came out. The cars sped on.
And I made it home Tuesday night.
* * *
Have you ever had to watch the lights instead of the road? Please share in the comments.
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Sorry Lisa. It is Rainy Days and Mondays always get me down…not Tuesdays. j/k of course. Glad you made it home. Great application. One thing though that you said strikes a chord in me: turn your lights on. It is unbelievable to me how many DO NOT! Mine are on in fog, snow, mist, rain, any moisture. Mine are on early morning and before dusk. Many have no clue how hard it is to see their car, especially certain colors in the rain or in the gray. Novel idea about the flashers though. I’ll have to remember that next time.
Ha. You’ve had me singing Rainy Days and Mondays all day. And ironically, it did rain here today out of the blue. 😉 You’re right that many people don’t turn their lights on at all and it is so dangerous. To them and to everybody else around them. We need to see and be seen. I keep my lights on at some level all the time. I’ve read statistics that it’s safer that way.
I’m glad you made it home safely, Lisa! I hate driving in conditions like that. I love that you drew so many lessons from your experience that can also be applied to other life situations.
You know how it is, Lesley: the idea for a blog post can come at the craziest times. 🙂 As I was driving in the rain, I kept thinking that I needed to write it all down. But that was definitely not the time for it. ha.
I love this post and the insight you gained through the reality of driving home in a rainstorm. Outstanding analogy and so true! Your words were an encouragement to tuck away in my heart!
Blessings on your week!
Thanks, Pam. I really dislike driving in those heavy deluges, but otherwise, I love a good rainy day. We had pop-up thunderstorms this afternoon and it was so pleasant since I’m safe at home and didn’t have to get out in it. May you have a blessed week too!
Love the analogy and application, Lisa. Our Father gives us wisdom, but many times we fail to use it or ignore it.
I’ll have to follow this advice next time it rains… and in life!
True, Floyd. He is always giving wisdom; we’re just not always good receivers. The disconnect is always on our end.
I’m glad you had the presence of mind to come up with all these great applications as you struggled to stay on the road. Back when I had multiple kids taking piano lessons, it always seemed to rain on piano day, whatever day of the week it fell on from year to year.
Glad you made it home safely.
Ha. I relate to the rain on piano day. We have a music festival in our city every spring, and it seems to rain that weekend almost every single year. 🙂
Lisa, your title grabbed me and what I found was a powerful post, full of God’s wisdom. I have been reading through and discussing a book on depression with a counselee. We talked about many of these same things last night. Funny how God does that! But you said it very powerfully and succinctly. I’ll be pinning and sharing.
I love how God does that too, Donna. I often find that he uses repetition with me when he’s trying to get his point across. I often need to be told more than once. 🙂
Driving through pelting rain is so harrowing! I love these applications, especially the one about looking for the light in front of us. As I’m going through challenges recently, a talk I heard encouraged me to look for even the smallest glimmer of light in hard situations. It’s life-giving and hope-stirring!
Praying for you to see enough light for your journey through your challenging situations, Betsy. Sometimes all we can see is a tiny flame in a dark room, but amazingly, our eyes are immediately drawn to it.
I got caught in a bad storm like that coming home from a wedding by myself a year or two ago – so scary. These are good, apt applications.
Yes, it can be scary. I don’t mind a little rain when I’m driving, but definitely not a downpour like that day and the day you mentioned. Sometimes pulling over to the side is the wisest thing in those kinds of rains. One thing we know is that eventually it will ease up.
What a wonderful way to turn a stressful drive into an inspiring post! Loved your thoughts about getting home in the rain. And enjoy that new grandbaby. I would drive 3 hours to see my grandkids also!
I’m preparing for my next 3-hour drive in a few days. Can’t wait to see that grandbaby again! 🙂 It’s definitely a do-able distance. Thanks for stopping in, Laurie.
Lisa, this resonated with me. I don’t like to drive in the rain and especially on the interstate in the rain. Your analogy to life is so beautifully said. I often change lanes trying to get “home” quicker or if I think another lane is better. Thus, my problem. I pray the Lord helps me keep my eyes on Him through it all.
I tend to be a lane-changer too, Karen. Sometimes it pays off; many times it doesn’t. I definitely need patience just to stay in my lane. 🙂
What practical wisdom from an ordinary day! I love this analogy so much! Thanks for joining me for #PorchStories!
Thanks for sharing, Kristin. I love that God can teach us something through any situation. 🙂
Dear Lisa, this is such a great analogy! Not to mention good driving tips. When driving in the rain, my tendency is to turn off the music so I can concentrate also. But frequently I find myself basking in the safety and comfort of being in a dry, warm vehicle. Do we do that with our faith at times, rather than paying attention to the new lessons the Lord is trying to teach us? Thanks and blessings for the gentle reminder to focus on what’s going on around us.
Good point, Alice. We can become complacent when things get easy instead of paying close attention like we do in the rain. Those occasional rainstorms can keep us on our toes, even though we don’t always appreciate them at the time.
Lisa,
Love the practical wisdom in your post. So glad you made it home safely and Congrats on your new grandbaby. The one on “slowing down,” such a good one because sometimes the pressure is to do something and to do it fast but I’m learning to wait on God’s timing (Isa. 40:31).
Blessings to you 🙂
Learning to wait on God’s timing is a difficult, lifelong lesson for all of us, Dolly. Thanks for sharing that. I’m still working on it too. 🙂
Great take-a-ways, Lisa!
Thanks, June. It rained again this past Tuesday! ha. But at least I wasn’t driving in it that time. 🙂
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Such a great metaphor for life and our walk with God! I recently had a quiet time that revealed this same truth to me, Lisa. I need to slow my pace and let Christ refuel me before rushing ahead toward an important goal/desire in my life. Isn’t it funny how God speaks to us when we are in situations like this? And I’m so glad He whispered these truths into your heart, my friend! They have blessed us all!
Thanks, Beth. I love when God reinforces lessons to us in different places and spaces. He really grabs my attention when he does that. 🙂 Yes, it’s easy to keep going and going and going without slowing down and refueling. But without that slowdown phase, we burn out. As an introvert, I see that all too often with myself.
I read articles by Gretchen Fleming, she uses the phrase, “Stay in your own lane, : in respect to not involving yourself in other people’s business, and neglecting your own walk with God. She minister in Florida, and I love the rain too.
I’ve read some of Gretchen’s blog posts too and appreciate her wisdom. Staying in our own lane is a hard thing to do when we’re so easily tempted to peek around the corner at what God is doing in someone else’s life and want that for ourselves. Thanks for sharing that, Rebecca.